Most critics respond warmly to Volver, with praise centred on Penélope Cruz’s performance and Almodóvar’s handling of female relationships. The reviews find emotional depth beneath the bright colours and flamboyant premises, particularly in the bonds between mothers and daughters. Cruz is repeatedly singled out for giving Raimunda resilience and feeling, while the ensemble earns recognition beyond its lead. Almodóvar’s ability to combine domestic routine, comedy, tragedy and the supernatural is another recurring strength.
The disagreement concerns how much freshness these familiar themes retain. Slant Magazine admires the craft but notes the limited risks, while Collider finds that the suspense gives way to a slower character study. Sight and Sound is the sharp dissenter, seeing recycled material, idealised sisterhood and too little conflict. The spread is therefore wide, although the prevailing view treats the return to familiar territory as emotionally rewarding rather than tired.
F
Financial Times
23 August 2006 · ★★★★★ · Nigel Andrews
100
Andrews praises Almodóvar's phenomenal mastery of style and ability to create gleaming coherence from wild premises. He singles out the epiphanic image-making and Cruz's acting, which matches her Sophia Loren-like presence.
The critic praises Almodóvar for crafting a fresh, inventive film that mixes genres deftly while returning to his roots in La Mancha and reuniting with Carmen Maura. The performances, especially Penélope Cruz's, and the film's emotional depth beneath its flamboyance are singled out for praise.
The critic praises Almodóvar’s ability to reveal deeper layers in Cruz beyond her beauty and notes the film’s rich emotional focus on family bonds and color. It singles out a memorable close-up of Cruz singing as emblematic of the director’s artful approach.
The critic finds Almodóvar on excellent form with a mature, beautifully told tale focused on female relationships and family ghosts. Penélope Cruz delivers a standout performance as the resilient Raimunda amid intricate mother-daughter dynamics.
Almodóvar delivers a fable of domestic drudgery, murder and magic that fuses the hysterical and the mundane with compassion, wit and grace. The director's sophisticated technique and ability to interpolate tragedy and farce are highlighted as strengths.
25 March 2006 · festival review · Jonathan Holland
80*
Almodóvar returns to his childhood roots with a low-frills, reflective, and conventional piece that celebrates the pueblo and its people through superbly drawn characters and a straightforward plot. The film is a subdued, sometimes intense and often comic homecoming that showcases Penélope Cruz at her finest.
Almodóvar returns to his roots in La Mancha and to working with women and Carmen Maura, achieving moments of deep dramatic intensity as a well-observed study of characters. The film is described as a paean to motherhood with strong commercial prospects.
The critic finds Volver one of Almodóvar's weaker efforts, a lazily recycled enterprise coasting on past goodwill with tired themes and sisterly idealisation. The lack of genuine conflict and overly familiar tropes are singled out for complaint.
The review finds Volver a finely crafted, emotionally satisfying return to Almodóvar’s favorite themes of women, motherhood, and forgiveness. It singles out the vivid details of women’s work and Penelope Cruz’s sparkling performance.
Almodóvar delivers an enchanting, gentle story that blends life after death, murder concealment, and everyday comedy while paying tribute to the resilient women of his childhood village. The film stands out for its vivid portrait of female continuity and common-sense approach to the supernatural.
The review calls Volver an exceptionally well-crafted work focused on women’s intimacy, rites, and forgiveness, comparing it favorably to earlier Almodóvar films while noting it avoids greater risks. It singles out Penelope Cruz’s strong, nuanced performance as a highlight that may earn her an Oscar.
Bradshaw calls the film a gripping melodrama that captures the heart with its richness, colour and warmth. He singles out Penelope Cruz's performance as Raimunda in the context of a mother's passionate love for her daughter.
Almodóvar creates another wise, luxuriant humanist tale set in an enchanted world of bright colors and vivid feeling, where violence and fear resolve into deeper harmonies. The director hands the film to its ensemble of lively actresses, especially Penélope Cruz as the hard-working Raimunda.
Christopher finds it a moist and creamy joy about incest and murder that even fervent critics will admire for its wit. He singles out the sassy female cast and Cruz's performance of her career.
The critic calls Volver a fast-moving, colourful story about women supporting each other across generations amid dark secrets and a realistic ghost. They single out Almodóvar’s confident handling of the supernatural element alongside a scintillating script, strong performances (especially Penélope Cruz), and a mix of warm comedy and genuine emotion.
The critic finds Volver one of Almodóvar's most self-assured and conventional films, a melodrama about family secrets, closure, and the mysteries of death and life after. Penelope Cruz's raw, primal performance stands out amid the strong ensemble, though the story shifts from suspenseful plot to a slower character study.
Almodóvar assembles a powerhouse all-female cast for a tale of survival, friendship and family secrets. The film showcases some of Penelope Cruz's finest work alongside equally strong turns from the rest of the ensemble.
Ordered by the weight we give each publication, then by score. Scores are normalised to 100; * means inferred from an unrated review. Summaries are ours, not quotations; follow the links for the reviews themselves. How we rate
